With Spain outlawing sponsorship agreements between sports teams and betting brands by passing the Royal Decree on Advertising, this will lead to the early termination of sponsorship deals in La Liga worth over $21m, according to analysis by GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Conrad Wiacek, Head of Sport Analysis at GlobalData, comments: “The Spanish Government has created a $21.93m shortfall in revenue for a number of its clubs, including the likes of Valencia and Sevilla. With the full economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic yet to be realised – with a lack of fans currently attending sporting events – sponsorship deals are of increasing importance across sport. With several high-profile deals such as Marathonbet’s $5.7m deal with Sevilla forced to end, the challenge for many clubs will be finding partners willing to take on deals at an equivalent value.”

This is a significant development for Spain, with rumours suggesting the UK may follow suit in due course. However, the exposure for Premier League clubs will be far greater, with over *$66m worth of deals under threat in the Premier League alone. Furthermore, as highlighted in GlobalData’s latest report, ‘Front of Shirt Sponsorship Report 2020-21’, gambling and betting brands spend over $124m across the top 15 European leagues, which is a significant source of revenue for many teams.

Wiacek adds: “With COVID-19 still having an impact on club finances, the revenue shortfall facing clubs is significant. Clubs in Spain will need to plug that shortfall very quickly, which could potentially result in lower value deals.”

*Data taken from GlobalData’s report: The Business of the English Premier League